Uncreative Labs

Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 377 Location: Stuttgart, Germany

Hello,
I have a question about Windows and networks:
I'm in the process of setting up a rather big raid1 array on my server ( 250gb ) and so I was wondering if I could get my parents computer to boot from that server. I saw a boot-option in many new BIOSes that is labeled 'LAN' and so I was wondering how I can boot from the lan. My server has an IP address, 192.168.0.1. How do I set the server up so that the pc will start from it? The ideal situation would be that the computer doesn't need a hdd at all. If that's not prossible then I'm trying to get the important parts ( registry, documents etc ) on that mirrored raid set. I always wondered what that booting from lan thing in the bios was good for...
Do you have any ideas on how to boot a Windows PC from a LAN?
In case it matters, the server uses Windows Server 2003.

mf_2

Joined: 03 Dec 2005 Posts: 41 Location: Netherlands

mf_2 wrote:

Hello,
I have a question about Windows and networks:
I'm in the process of setting up a rather big raid1 array on my server ( 250gb ) and so I was wondering if I could get my parents computer to boot from that server. I saw a boot-option in many new BIOSes that is labeled 'LAN' and so I was wondering how I can boot from the lan. My server has an IP address, 192.168.0.1. How do I set the server up so that the pc will start from it? The ideal situation would be that the computer doesn't need a hdd at all. If that's not prossible then I'm trying to get the important parts ( registry, documents etc ) on that mirrored raid set. I always wondered what that booting from lan thing in the bios was good for...
Do you have any ideas on how to boot a Windows PC from a LAN?
In case it matters, the server uses Windows Server 2003.

mf_2

You will need a networkcard with bootrom installed, and some stuff like this:
http://www.sharewareconnection.com/network-boot-tools.htm

and look here:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/WindowsServ/2003/all/ads/en-us/Default.asp?url=/resources/documentation/WindowsServ/2003/all/ADS/en-us/nbs_install_checklist.asp

Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 377 Location: Stuttgart, Germany

Thanks for the links, I'll look into it tonight.

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2006 1:21 pm

Keep us updated, mf_2. I'd like to try it myself too, but am in the middle of building a more modern computer and solving all kinds of incompatibility problems.

Would you believe the system won't work because the processor has the wrong core? Intel makes no mention of the core on the package, so it's an exercise in digging.

Joined: 01 Oct 2004 Posts: 169 Location: behind you!

mf_2 wrote:

I'm in the process of setting up a rather big raid1 array on my server ( 250gb )

Think thats big? I'm in the process of building a truely big 1250GB (or 1.2 TB) server. Right now I'm looking at buying 6 250GB drives and setting them up in a raid 5 array. As each drive is only $91 this is the cheapest way to 1tb.

I'll have to post pics once done. Laughing

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:41 pm

The drives fro the raid array just arrived today and I tried getting started on the lan boot thing. I wanted to download the network boot tools, but then I saw that they're only shareware. Is there a freeware program or suite with the same functionality?

Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 377 Location: Stuttgart, Germany

That guest was me. I'm at the server right now and it doesn't use cookies...

Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 377 Location: Stuttgart, Germany

Another problem: I want to copy the contents of the 10gb hdd that is in the server noe onto a 250gb hdd, what good freeware program can do that? Something like Norton Ghost but free. Do you have any suggestions?

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:21 am

On Hiren's bootCD there is a few good transfer proggies there is a ver. 7.6 out now.

Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 377 Location: Stuttgart, Germany

I reinstalled the whole os and what not, since no transfer program worked for me.
I believe what killed most programs was that my bootable partition was a dynamic disk, not a basic one. at least that's what ghost complained about...
However, I still have that problem with the network boot tools only being shareware. Does anybody know any good freeware program for that task?

Joined: 04 Oct 2004 Posts: 114 Location: ~/

If you have Terminal Services on your Windows server, you could use a Linux live CD to run a Terminal Services client.

It would probably be easier to do what you want (a thin client setup) with Linux. If your ethernet hardware on the client has the right support for net booting, I think you can use e.g. TFTP to transfer data needed for booting (kernel, configuration files, ...). Then you can use NFS to mount the needed file systems on the server.